Mark your Calendars

Ghana fans worldwide, take heed. According to the local Christ Universal Evangelical Network, all Fridays between now and June will be National Prayer Days for the Black Stars. The Network in addition also called on religious bodies to intercede on behalf of the national team at all meetings to ensure God’s direction and guidance for the players.

Given the recent spate of injuries that have shattered the confidence of the Black Stars, perhaps a measure of divine providence would hold the squad in good stead. The Grandmaster, head technician Ratomir Dujkovic, a sworn agrarian-socialist, has other recommendations.

Dujkovic, a believer in the power of the workers, has called for the recruitment of three more Ghanaian coaches to help in the team’s preparation for the 2006 World Cup in Germany. To his credit, the Grandmaster wants to hire experienced local coaches for this role, an effort which will build up local talent to allow Ghana one day to have home grown coaches performing at the international level. Perhaps unsurprisingly, given the Grandmaster’s background, the new coaches would serve “as scouts to spy on matches involving teams in Ghana’s group made up of Italy, Czech Republic and the USA.”

Perhaps rather than prayers, Ghana’s churches can start collecting tithes. We will apparently need them to support the Grandmaster’s rather grandiose spending habits.